The youth firearms deer season* will be conducted statewide from Thursday, Oct. 17, through Sunday, Oct. 20. Participant numbers are not limited and there is no special permit so parents should purchase or obtain a regular deer hunting license for the youth who will be hunting.
* This youth season is not part of special youth deer hunts in state parks. Registration for those hunts closes Aug. 16. Dates for some of those special state park youth hunts may fall within the dates of the statewide youth deer season. Visit the special youth deer hunts listing for information on those hunts.
Participation
- Youth ages 10 to 17 may participate. Youth ages 10 to 13 must be accompanied by an adult parent/guardian/mentor 18 or older. The adult does not need to be licensed.
- The accompanying adult cannot hunt in most areas and party hunting is not allowed (youth must tag their own deer). Adults may hunt in areas where the early antlerless season is open with the correct license.
- Participation does not affect eligibility for the regular deer season; however, deer harvested during the youth season count toward the youth’s annual statewide bag limit.
Requirements
- Participating youth must possess a valid firearm deer license. Youth age 10, 11, and 12 must possess a free license. Youth age 12 and older must also have a firearms safety certificate or apprentice hunter validation.
- An early antlerless deer license is not required for youth to participate in the youth deer season.
- Blaze orange/pink requirements apply to all hunters, trappers and adult mentors during this season.
- Youth possessing a firearms license may use a crossbow. Youth hunting under an archery license may also use a crossbow during the entire archery season as well as the four-day youth deer season.
Bag limit/bonus tags
- The bag limit is one either sex deer. If the youth is hunting in an early antlerless area, he or she may take up to three antlerless deer with the correct licenses.
- Youth may not take antlerless deer in permit areas designated bucks-only.
- Legal bucks must be tagged with the youth’s firearm license. Bonus tags are not valid for legal bucks. Party hunting is not allowed.
- Deer permit area designations for the youth season are the same as the firearms season. A permit area designated either-sex during the firearm season is either-sex during the youth deer season.
- Youth may use a bonus tag rather than their youth firearm license tag for antlerless deer in permit areas designated two-deer limit or three-deer limit, or where the early antlerless season is open.
- In disease management areas (600-series with the exceptions of DPAs 679 and 684) youth may use a disease management permit in place of a bonus permit to tag antlerless deer.
- Youth must use their youth firearm license tag if they take an antlerless deer in a permit area designated antlerless permit lottery or either-sex. Bonus tags are not valid in these areas.
- The youth season is open statewide.
- Crossbows are allowed.
- The Whitewater State Game Refuge in Winona County and the surrounding DPA 644 is open only to youth participating in the Youth Deer Season. It is not open to early-antlerless season hunters.
- Itasca State Park (Deer Permit Area 287) is closed during the Youth Deer Season.